One of the most brutal, hard-hitting matches in pro wrestling history.

2020 MATCH OF THE YEAR ARCHIVES

VOICES OF WRESTLING MATCH OF THE YEAR ARCHIVES

#4
WALTER vs. Ilja Dragunov
10/29
WWE (NXT UK)

Overall Points: 565
Total Votes: 83
% of Ballots: 49.1%
8 First-Place Votes

“Perhaps the most violent, disgusting, disturbing, and beautiful non-plunder match I’ve ever seen. One of the rare matches where the lack of crowd enhanced the match. You can hear the impact, feel the strikes, be part of the breath takingly brutal bombs these two threw at each other. These two make you forget they are alone in a warehouse with a referee because you are wondering if the next stiff kick, lariat, chop, or elbow will be the last. People say this silly stuff is supposed to resemble a real fight. You won’t find fights in biker bars after 2am and brutal as this. About as easy a MOTY for me as I can remember since I’ve been a part of this site.” -Steven Case

“Kings Road modernized is what I’d like to call this match. Just the pure brutality and sheer intensity sells this match to the highest degree for me. Big strikes, head drops, suplexes, and other insane things. It’s beautiful brutality at its finest. I love everything about WALTER being this unstoppable beast and Ilja just giving him everything he’s got. Perfect Story, perfect match.” -Danny Kuchler

“The most brutal match to be fought under the WWE banner. It shouldn’t be the case that a match from NXT UK can top a list of the best matches in the entire world, but that’s 2020 or you. Expect the unexpected. However, what probably wasn’t unexpected was that Walter and Ilja turned on the magic again to have another match in their series that delivered in spades. Yeah I’m probably biased because these are two of my favourite wrestlers and they’re two of the European lads that didn’t turn out to be creeps, but check the ratings on things like GRAPPL and Cagematch, this match was universally loved. Perhaps this was the only match of the year that benefitted not having a crowd, and not just because the UK fans would of chanted some dumb football chants about shoes off if you love Ilja, but because everything sounded and resonated louder. Walter and Ilja’s chops always sounded loud, but this was blood curdlingly loud. They’re 2017 Carat final got my #2 spot 3 years ago, but in 2020 they went one better. I’ve watched it multiple times now and always come away thinking it’s the MOTY.” -Ed Mills

“I think this is one of the most brutal matches I’ve ever seen. The only weapons were WALTER’s CHOPS. And boy did he chop the crap out of Ilja. It felt so painful watching this match, but at the same time it was completely enthralling watching Ilja take the beating. I’ve seen a ton of great matches this year, but this is one I will remember for a good while.” -Bryan Rose

“NXT UK has always provided incredible matches, often when we least expected. I was unable to look away from the horrors both men afflicted, and it made for one of the most compelling wrestling experiences of the year.” -Kristen Ashly

“The best matches of the pandemic era came down simply to just two (or more) people just beat the ever living crap out of each other. No single match did that better this year…or maybe better ever then Walter and Dragunov. At the end of the day I think this match is even better enjoyed then if a crowd would have been there.” -Kentucky210

“In spite of their setting, they just went out and had a full on WALTER/Ilja indie match (HBK & HHH must’ve had a bad Zoom connection that day). Great 100mph start with Ilja trying to win it early. WALTER trying to grind Ilja’s neck into dust in every way he can, with Ilja playing the scrappy never-say-day role to perfection right to the end. Just a brutal, excellent war of a match.” -Gareth Hodgson

“If You Think The “WWE STYLE” Is Soft, And You Want Some Good Old Pro Wrestling Match Then Go Do Yourself A Favor And Watch Walter vs. Ilja Dragunov From NXT UK. Walter Was On A Verge Of A Record Setting Title Reign With The NXT UK Championship, While Dragunov Was Destined TO Take The Title Away From The Ring General. This Match Didn’t Start With Your Usual Tie Up, As IN Just Few Seconds Walter Was Blistering Dragnovs Chest With Is Trademark Chops. Dragnov’s Neck Got Whiplashed On The Ropes, As Walter Looked To Behead The Up and Coming Superstar, But Dragunov Showed Will And Determination And Was Selling The Neck Like An Absolute Pro. Dragunov Was Matching Up To Every Strike And Every Blow, As Both Men Showed The All Japan Kings Road Style Of Wrestling. A Little Trip To The Outside, and a big splash Couldn’t Keep Dragunov down, as walter applied a vicious sleeper with dragunovs body going limp. An Absolute War That Truly Was The match Of The Year Under the WWE Banner.” -suprit ramnathkar

“I could write many words about this, but it’s a match from the dead zone known as NXT UK that got universal praise and MOTY buzz. What more could define that a match is a MOTY-level match in 2020 than that fact?” -Dylan Fox

“The kind of brutality you usually see in New Japan invaded NXT: UK with WALTER vs. Dragunov. In this case the empty arena added to the spectacle by allowing the viewer to hear Dragunov and the pain he was going through. The sound of WALTER’s chops breaking the skin of Dragunov will haunt my nightmares.” -Greg Parks

“The greatest empty arena match. Meeting for the NXT UK Title, a belt which should be buried with Walter one day 50 years from now, Ilja Dragunov decided he was ready for Walter. Walter decided otherwise. The physicality of this match is something to tell your grandchildren about as every slap reverberated off the walls of the empty building it was wrestled in. This resembled something WWE normally doesn’t go toward, because if you did these matches every month you would end your career faster than David Starr doing promoted tweets to save his reputation. It was like a really super tough smaller man going against the toughest big man, and weight classes matter. I hope they got bonused, and hope this match isn’t lost to time.” -Rich Latta

”I hate WWE, and the very idea of what NXT UK represents. And yet, this was still the 2nd best match of the year. It’s infuriating. These two men battered each other with a level of violence that deserved a much grander stage and much more favorable circumstances. Perhaps the greatest match in their historic feud.” -Lawson Leong

“Pro wrestling distilled to it’s most violent basic form. Two absolute warriors going to absolute war without a single fan in attendance. The lack of crowd noise added to the intensity of the match and made every chop and blow resonate from out of my TV into my living room.” -WH Park

“Violent. Just one of the most physically violent matches I’ve ever seen on any WWE programming. Sometimes uncomfortable to watch, but you find yourself to hooked to look away. There was a period I thought this would be my favorite match of the year, as you can see it still rates highly. In an ugly and harsh year this was the ugly and harsh match we needed. In your face, unapologetic, men refusing to give an inch but doing their best to take miles. Absolutely great pro-wrestling.” -Jeri L. Evans

“A rare match where not having fans in the arena may have made it even better! You could feel (and hear) the intensity in every chop, suplex and other move these men inflicted on each other. An absolute war, with the smaller man refusing to quit and giving as good as he got against his larger opponent.” -Liam Renner

“When Jim Cornette praises a match in 2020, you know it’s special. These two international stalwarts added a few new chapters to the big man vs. little man playbook. Dragunov brought the fight right away, absorbing all of WALTER’s blistering chops and refusing to stay down, even after hurting his neck. WALTER’s physicality forces you to wince, reminding me of the quote Goodwillie loves using “I can’t make you believe everything else is real, but I can damn sure make you believe I’m real.” And the suspense, my God, every time you thought Dragunov was going to end WALTER’s reign, the champion kicked out.” -John Corrigan

“I don’t think I have ever seen WALTER have a bad singles match, this match was so great. One word to describe this match it was violent. This was the best match that happened underneath the WWE banner for sure. I think this match might be one of the most violent non stipulation WWE matches in history that I have seen.” -Filip Pejic

“The year’s best empty arena match came from an unlikely source. Modern WWE typically does little for me and NXT UK, it’s most overlooked brand, probably shouldn’t even exist given the events of this year. Nonetheless, these two overcame gaudy lighting, piped in audio and overbearing commentary to give us something where the excellence and brutality could not be denied. Free from the company’s usual melodrama and playing to the hard camera, these two used their years of experience together to surpass their many previous encounters. From start to finish that was a vicious fight that gave you no time to catch your breath. When he’s like this WALTER is the best big man in wrestling today, dangerous is his offence and almost impossible to overcome. Dragunov was every bit the perfect opponent, tenacious and relentless in his pursuit of the impossible. This was a simple and glorious display of uninterrupted painful violence. It is as good of a David vs. Goliath style of match as you are likely to find anywhere.” -Jack Groom

“One of the very few if any matches anywhere that actually benefited from the COVID-19 crowd size rules. Every chop WALTER threw echoed in a near-empty building sounded like a cannon going off. But Ilja was game too – he got the normally stoic WALTER to drop the Imperium facade and actually express emotion when Ilja wouldn’t stay down. Ilja’s selling on offense was superb as well. Just a masterful match and performance from both men.” -George Atsaves

“Although they have wrestled several times in the past, the NXT UK match Dragunov and WALTER had for the UK Title was unbelievable! Hard-hitting and innovative, it was a match which showed you why the European wrestling scene is one of the most talented in the world.” -Steven Jackson

“Violent and beautiful” -Lee Malone

“Between the COVID and WWE just paying Walter hundreds and thousands of dollars a year to sit at home, we didn’t see much of Walter this year. And when we DID see him, he was on NXT UK; so you’re not going to be able to see Walter matches unless you have a search party with you. But round up the neighborhood, pass out the fliers with his picture on it, because this match is 100% worth searching for.” -Doug Fowler (Skeach101)

“Amazingly violent encounter that was made even better without an audience due to the sounds of the strikes.” -Mike Gilbert

“Sure, there’s no crowd. Sure, NXT UK is the epitome of a vanity project. Sure, these guys deserve better. But for one moment in time, these two dudes brought pure violence to the Network. Unbelievable.” -Marty Day

“The often-forgotten, much-maligned NXT UK brand produced the best empty arena match of 2020. WALTER and Dragunov was a knock-down-drag-out fight. There wasn’t a ton of intricate sequences or crazy flips. Just pure simple brutality. For twenty-five minutes these two men blistered each other with strike after strike. The smaller Dragnunov unleashed everything in his arsenal but couldn’t topple his gigantic foe. Once again WALTER is in the best WWE match of the year.” -Jeremy Donovan

“A simply brutal war. So physically intense and used the empty arena aesthetic to their advantage. This made you want Ilja to overcome and fear WALTER.” -Sid Pullar III

“A destructive, visceral deal that harkened back to the wars these two had before being signed. Unapologetically aggressive, it’s one of those matches where I want to run up to ringside and scream at them: “HEY, YOU’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO HURT EACH OTHER FOR REAL.”” -Warren Hayes

“I don’t think it’s possible for these two to have a bad match. I’m probably forgetting some dud but when even the hollow, vacuous shell that is NXT UK can put on something like this, you know you’re on to a winner. The empty setting of the BT Sport Studios (funnily enough, mere paces away from my old work office) was almost perfect for the brutal, visceral nature of this match. Walter did big boy things, beating the pudding out of Ilja, and Ilja took the beating as well as he always does. Absolutely brilliant.” -Andrew Sinclar

“My favorite WWE match ever. This was a perfect brutal war. That felt 80’s UWF matches.” -Salih Arandı

“Sheer brutality. Those are the words that best describe this latest chapter in the rivalry between WALTER and Ilja Dragunov. They’ve had plenty of stellar matches in the past (one of their matches from wXw finished in the top ten of this very poll a few years ago), but they took to the next level with this encounter. While it would’ve been great to see this match in front of a crowd, the fact that they were in an empty arena actually helped it in a number of ways. It seemed like the strikes, and all of the various sounds in general were amplified in a big way in this setting. It all helped add to the level of violence we saw here. Even though he’s in NXT UK, WALTER is still one of the best wrestlers in the world, and Ilja Dragunov is still (arguably) his best opponent.” -Sean Sedor

“Violent poetry or poetic violence? How do you call such a wonderful and beautiful spectacle of two men beating the hell out of each other in an empty arena and drawing emotion out of the spectator? It was simply a high state of art; a glamourous experience for the eyes to witness. It was a Shakesperian combat within the squared circle. Professional wrestling can be amazing sometimes.” -Evandro Furtado

“Loved their previous matches in wXw but this was the best yet, despite taking place in the NXT UK wasteland” -Ben Fox

“Brutal. Violent. Vintage Walter and a wake-up call for fans not yet on board with Dragunov.” -Matt Carlins

“These two did the only thing you could do to make a match in empty arena truly great. They beat the shit out of each other until one of them went down. WALTER being able to succeed at his style of wrestling in spite of the glossiness and veneer of WWE television is a testament to his greatness.” -Suit Williams

“The beefy dudes slapping-each-other version of the Contrived NXT epic and also The first time WWE has really understood what they had with WALTER. It’s the type of match I like that touches on the fringe of excess.” -Darren

“It’s not every day — or any day, really — that you leave NXT UK and tell everyone they HAVE to tune in. That’s what this was. The eerie silence that surrounded this crowdless match added to every stiff, violent strike that they threw.” -Sean Ross Sapp

“An absolute war. Even better than their WxW matches from 2018. It’s a shame this featured on a show so people watch, because it would have been career-changing for both had it occurred on the main NXT brand.” -Mo Chatra

“This was the perfect match for not having fans in attendance. You were able to hear every strike and chop that the two men hit each other with. Since both men knew each other so well from past encounters, the match was nothing short of spectacular. A very brutal match from two of the best NXT UK has to offer.” -Luis Perez

“I didn’t expect a WWE match on my MOTY ballot to be honest. As a German, a match between WALTER and Ilja Dragunov is so much more than a match to me: it’s pure emotion, it’s a callback to one of the greatest confrontations i’ve ever seen at a live pro-wrestling event. As a wXw regular I grew up with the young WALTER and I also grew up with the much slimmer Ilja Dragunov nearly a decade ago. I saw Dragunov being the greatest wXw Shotgun champion, a new dominant force at wXw and then he met WALTER. The first match I saw live in attendance between the two was in my hometown where Ilja only came in as a replacement to face WALTER. The Austrian giant won the match via referee stoppage and you could cleary see that those two gentleman have some chemistry. Fast forward one year later at 16 Carat Gold, the day Ilja became “Unbesiegbar“ and won the 16 Carat Gold tournament. Only two months later it was time to say goodbye when they had their last match on German soil, thankfully I was there live in attendance. Back to the here and now it was the same energy between WALTER and Ilja: It was brutal, it was cruel, it was a war and for me it was like I was in attendance live for the fourth time..” -Christian Gascoigne

“This match was incredible. Two men just beating the living shit out of each other in a 25 minute sprint.” -Tyler Forness

“The physicality of WALTER vs. Dragunov is unsettling and fascinating. From its initial seconds until WALTER gazes at his beaten, bloodied foe, the NXT UK Championship match maintains a sky-high level of intensity. Dragunov hurls his body at WALTER with no regard for his mortal frame; WALTER is forced to keep upping the brutality to keep this challenger down. Through it all, it felt like I was watching some violent rite of passage out in the wilds. Never mind that this is on a WWE C show for a title the company seems to often forget about. WALTER and Dragunov manage to make this feel like a crucial battle, a war waged over two fighters’ very souls.” -Ryan Dilbert

“Pure, beautiful, unadulterated violence. A gut wrenching, hard hitting match that will leave you breathless and asking “Are these men okay? Does Dragunov owe Walter money?” Hard to watch at moments, but nonetheless, a beautiful violent affair from NXT UK.” -Abraham Delgado

“The empty-arena era is not good for professional wrestling; that is obvious. However, some enterprising performers have been able to make the best of a bad situation, as WALTER and Ilja Dragunov did on an episode of NXT UK. By focusing on a match built on brutal-sounding strikes, the performers used the empty-arena setting to their advantage, as each vicious strike exploded out of the speakers of the fans watching at home. A simple match that featured the larger heel dominating a smaller babyface, who never gave up and continued to fight back, was effective and a textbook example of how wrestlers can still have great matches despite not working in front of a live audience.” -Jesse Collings

“absolutely astounding to me that a match could possibly be so good to overcome being in the fed in 2020. cannot put enough ‘context demerits’ on this to detract from the fact that these two dudes know how to fight for my entertainment.” -kara

“This match was the best way to do empty-arena wrestling. Loud chops and strikes was the basis of this match as you have a simple story of a larger heel beating down on the defiant babyface.” -Jason Oun

“Never mind that it took place in an empty arena with some canned crowd audio and typical over-the-top WWE announcer spiel. Never mind that it’s NXT UK, which nobody outside of Joe Lanza, Ian Hamilton, the Shake Them Ropes podcast, and maybe a few other people watch. Never mind that it’s WWE, which just sucks in general. Forget all of that. This is a top ten match of the year contender and the WWE match of the year bar none. Nothing else comes close. It’s also one of the most brutally violent matches I’ve ever watched. WALTER and Ilja beat each other to a literal bloody mess, the empty arena setting actually helping in this case because you could hear the strikes so clearly.” -Andrew Rich

“The most hard hitting match of the year. Dragunov and WALTER had one mission in mind, to destroy one another. This match played with the fact they were in a empty arena in their favor and very few matches have been able to do that last year.” -Juan Carlos Reneo

“I’ve heard people say “This was a FIGHT” about this match. I think, rather, this was a horror movie. This was the bear attack from The Revenant. This was Ilya fighting and fighting and trying to survive the beast that was mauling him. It was incredible for most of it. What kept it from going higher up my ballot was that it simply went far past its peak. With a crowd and better timing? This is a contender for match of the decade.” -Jeremy Sexton

“Over the year of 2020 wrestlers discovered a number of ways to have a great match in an empty room: lots of talking back and forth to emphasise the drama, fast paced action that doesn’t leave gaps for awkward silence or the way of Draganov and WALTER, just beat the ever living piss out of each other for real. While they weren’t the only wrestlers to take this option, they were the ones who took that concept the furthest, sickeningly brutalising each other in an incredibly violent match. From the get go the chops these men laid into each other echoed around the empty NXT UK arena as Draganov came at WALTER with all the fire he could muster and the UK Champion match him with a stoic wall of force.” -Sam Brown

“I have nothing deep to say about this match. But what’s interesting is I don’t think anyone does. It’s just one of those matches everyone magically agreed is amazing. It just bangs.” -Chris O’Brien

“This is one of the few matches that were improved by an empty arena. The noises that these two made, whether it was the guttural grunts or the horrendous cracks of violence, will stay with me forever. Dragunov is the perfect opponent for a bully like Walter, as his selling simultaneously shows intense pain along with the ability to take more. WWE UK should be having matches like this every week, but I guess we can settle for once a year.” -Neil David

“This was a match which was wholly helped by the soulless empty arena setting. It spectacularly served to heighten the drama by exaggerating each chop, strike and bellowing shout from the two wrestlers. Walter’s cathartic and relentless attacks were on point as always, delivering yet another outstanding match with, his long time rival, Ilja Dragunov. The Russian played his underdog role perfectly, showing an unbelievable amount of babyface fire to battle the ‘Ring General’. It was a match best summed up as brutal. Something you never see in the WWE environment – making it ever more exhilarating.” -Jamie Johnson

“A great example of an empty arena match being great. It helps when you have long-time rivals determined to elevate their game and show off their violent tendencies.” -Dave Musgrave

“The match that I wish the most had been in front of an audience. With that said, it also highlights what a waste of two incredible talents stuck on a dead show.” -Mark Robinson

“I may be on an island by saying this was not their best match – far from it – but this absolutely was their highest profile match to date, even if it was on one of WWE’s many under-the-radar shows. NXT UK may as well be the witness protection programme to the majority of fans, but every now and then it does throw up some incredible gems – with the empty arena amplifying every single shot as WALTER beat Dragunov bloody. A million miles removed from what we’ve come to associate with the WWE initials – and because of that, it stood out… although you can’t (nor should you) be doing stuff like this every week.” -Ian Hamilton

Voices of Wrestling 2020 Match of the Year
(261-11)

PlaceMatchDatePromotionOverall PointsTotal Votes% of ballotsHighest Vote
1Hangman Page & Kenny Omega vs. The Young Bucks2/29AEW106912272.2%1st
2Tetsuya Naito vs. Kazuchika Okada1/5NJPW93610662.7%1st
3Kazuchika Okada vs. Kota Ibushi1/4NJPW8319958.6%1st
4WALTER vs. Ilja Dragunov10/29WWE (NXT UK)5658349.1%1st
5Will Ospreay vs. Hiromu Takahashi1/4NJPW5087846.2%1st
6Go Shiozaki vs. Takashi Sugiura12/6NOAH4345633.1%1st
7Hiromu Takahashi vs. El Desperado12/11NJPW3405532.5%1st
8Katsuhiko Nakajima vs. Go Shiozaki11/22NOAH3074224.9%1st
9RED vs. Toryumon Gen12/20Dragongate2763721.9%1st
10Kenny Omega vs. PAC2/26AEW1713420.1%1st
11Stadium Stampede5/23AEW1662816.6%1st
12Kazuchika Okada vs. Shingo Takagi10/10NJPW1463520.7%2nd
13Villano III Jr. vs. Aéreo3/1AAA1452414.2%1st
14Santana/Ortiz vs. Best Friends9/16AEW1422917.2%1st
15Kota Ibushi vs. Minoru Suzuki10/10NJPW1232213.0%1st
16Jon Moxley vs. Minoru Suzuki2/9NJPW1152816.6%1st
17Mayu Iwatani vs. Takumi Iroha2/8Stardom1142112.4%2nd
18Mizuki vs. Yuka Sakazaki11/7TJPW1111911.2%1st
19FTR vs. The Young Bucks11/7AEW1092514.8%2nd
20Tetsuya Naito vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi9/20NJPW1032213.0%2nd
21Go Shiozaki vs. Kazuyuki Fujita3/29NOAH91137.7%1st
22Kento Miyahara vs. Zeus10/5AJPW811810.7%2nd
23Yuki Ishikawa vs. Daisuke Ikeda3/7wXw80116.5%1st
24Adam Page, Alex Reynolds & John Silver vs. MJF, Ortiz & Santana12/30AEW771810.7%1st
25Mayu Iwatani vs. Takumi Iroha10/18Stardom75116.5%1st
26Sasha Banks vs. Bayley10/25WWE66105.9%1st
27Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Will Ospreay2/14RevPro61158.9%2nd
28Kaito Kiyomiya vs. Go Shiozaki1/4NOAH59116.5%3rd
29Hiromu Takahashi vs. Ryu Lee2/9NJPW58116.5%2nd
30Kenny Omega vs. Laredo Kid12/12AAA51105.9%2nd
31Mike Bailey vs. Bandido3/7wXw5074.1%1st
32Brodie Lee vs. Cody10/7AEW49158.9%6th
33Shingo Takagi vs. Will Ospreay9/27NJPW49116.5%5th
34Daniel Bryan vs. Drew Gulak3/8WWE4974.1%1st
35Finn Balor vs. Kyle O'Reilly10/4WWE (NXT)47116.5%3rd
36PAC vs. Orange Cassidy2/29AEW4695.3%1st
37Fred Yehi vs. Jeremy Wyatt6/27St. Louis Anarchy44105.9%2nd
38Matt Tremont vs. Rickey Shane Page10/30H204274.1%1st
39Kento Miyahara vs. Suwama3/23AJPW3895.3%1st
40Kota Ibushi vs. Tomohiro Ishii9/27NJPW3884.7%4th
41Kota Ibushi vs. Taichi10/16NJPW3884.7%5th
42Butcher & Blade vs. Natural Nightmares11/11AEW3774.1%1st
43Kaito Ishida vs. Keisuke Okuda11/3Dragongate3763.6%1st
44Eita vs. Naruki Doi8/2Dragongate3674.1%2nd
45Hideki Suzuki vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima2/16NOAH3674.1%4th
46Go Shiozaki vs. Kenoh8/10NOAH3653.0%2nd
47Chessman vs. Pagano12/12AAA3453.0%1st
48Hangman Page & Kenny Omega vs. The Lucha Brothers2/19AEW3195.3%4th
49Kagetsu & Mayu Iwatani vs. Jungle Kyona & Momo Watanabe1/26Stardom3153.0%4th
50Jake Lee vs. Kento Miyahara1/3AJPW2974.1%5th
51Tetsuya Endo vs. Daisuke Sasaki11/3DDT2942.4%1st
52Tomohiro Ishii vs. Jay White10/16NJPW2784.7%4th
53Katsuhiko Nakajima vs. Kaito Kiyomiya10/11NOAH2742.4%1st
54Cody vs. Eddie Kingston7/22AEW2742.4%3rd
55Wotan & Mascara Sagrada Jr. vs. El Hijo de Fishman & Mr. Condor2/15Lucha Strong2731.8%1st
56Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Will Ospreay2/2NJPW2674.1%4th
57Will Ospreay vs. Dowie James1/11MCW2642.4%1st
58Kzy vs. Naruki Doi2/7Dragongate2642.4%2nd
59Rickey Shane Page vs. Nick Gage2/15GCW2584.7%3rd
60AJ Styles vs. Daniel Bryan6/8WWE2574.1%2nd
61Shingo Takagi vs. Tomohiro Ishii9/30NJPW2553.0%1st
62Adam Cole, Bobby Fish, Kyle O'Reilly & Roderick Strong vs. Alexander Wolfe, Fabian Aichner, Marcel Barthel & WALTER1/25WWE (NXT)2542.4%2nd
63Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata6/17NJPW2484.7%4th
64Brodie Lee vs. Cody8/22AEW2374.1%5th
65Arisa Nakajima vs. Yoshiko7/13SEAdLINNNG2263.6%6th
66Yuya Aoki vs. Fumenori Abe2/11BJW2253.0%4th
67Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso9/27WWE2053.0%5th
68Emi Sakura vs. Yuna Mizumori6/30Gatoh Move2021.2%1st
69Tomohiro Ishii vs. Minoru Suzuki9/19NJPW1953.0%4th
70Jun Akiyama vs. Konosuke Takeshita11/3DDT1942.4%3rd
71Hiromu Takahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii7/2NJPW1842.4%4th
72Mayu Iwatani vs. Jungle Kyona7/24Stardom1821.2%1st
72Daniel Bryan vs. Drew Gulak5/11WWE1821.2%1st
74Lee Moriarty vs. Jonathan Gresham10/10GCW1742.4%5th
75Mayumi Ozaki vs. Saori Anou8/28OZ Academy1731.8%3rd
76Jake Lee, Shuji Ishikawa & Yuma Aoyagi vs. Kento Miyahara, Suwama & Zeus4/6AJPW1631.8%1st
77Abdullah Kobayashi vs. Toshiyuki Sakuda vs. Yuki Ishikawa6/21BJW1631.8%3rd
78Marcius Pitt vs. Davis Storm3/7EPW1631.8%3rd
79Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi vs. Naomi Yoshimura & Yuki Ueno10/25DDT1631.8%5th
80Lee Moriarty vs. ACH10/9GCW1542.4%3rd
81Men's Royal Rumble Match1/26WWE1542.4%4th
82Tyler Bate vs. Jordan Devlin1/12WWE (NXT UK)1442.4%7th
83Utami Hyashishita vs. Momo Watanabe12/20Stardom1431.8%3rd
84Giulia vs. Tam Nakano10/3Stardom1431.8%5th
85Jordynne Grace vs. Deonna Purrazzo7/18Impact Wrestling1421.2%4th
86Shotaro Ashino & Kuma Arashi vs. Shuji Ishikawa & Suwama11/18AJPW1410.6%1st
86Baliyan Akki & Mei Suruga vs. Riho & Yuna Mizumori7/5Gatoh Move1410.6%1st
86Mayu Iwatani, Tam Nakano, Starlight Kid & Saya Iida vs. Giulia, Syuri, Maika & Himeka6/21Stardom1410.6%1st
86Daniel Makabe vs. Kevin Ku1/5SUP1410.6%1st
86Jordan Oliver vs. Myron Reed7/25Synergy Pro Wrestling1410.6%1st
86Jack Tucker vs. Thirteen11/13United Pro Wrestling1410.6%1st
92John Cena vs. The Fiend4/5WWE1342.4%3rd
93Titan vs. Soberano Jr.9/25CMLL1331.8%3rd
94Suwama vs. Shotaro Ashino6/30AJPW1321.2%3rd
95Lee Moriarty vs. Daniel Makabe10/9SUP1321.2%4th
96Kenny Omega vs. Hangman Page11/7AEW1242.4%6th
97Riho vs. Nyla Rose2/12AEW1231.8%4th
98Shingo Takagi vs. SHO6/22NJPW1231.8%5th
99DIY vs. Moustache Mountain1/25WWE (NXT)1221.2%3rd
100Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Yoshiko & Sareee11/27SEAdLINNNG1131.8%3rd
101Daisuke Harada vs. Dick Togo1/30NOAH1131.8%5th
102MAO vs. Masato Tanaka2/23DDT1131.8%6th
103Kota Ibushi vs. SANADA10/18NJPW1131.8%6th
104Giulia vs. Syuri12/20Stardom1121.2%2nd
105Rich Swann vs. Eric Young10/24Impact Wrestling1121.2%3rd
106Kagetsu vs. Meiko Satomura2/24Kagetsu Retirement Show1121.2%4th
107Wotan & Super Dragons vs. El Hijo de Fishman & Amatheus12/5LLPM1121.2%5th
108Hirooki Goto & Tomohiro Ishii vs. EVIL & Shingo Takagi1/6NJPW1053.0%8th
109Thunder Rosa vs. Priscilla Kelly9/22UWN1042.4%7th
110Wardlow vs. Cody Rhodes2/19AEW1031.8%4th
110Will Ospreay vs. Tomohiro Ishii9/23NJPW1031.8%4th
112Mayu Iwatani vs. Momo Watanabe1/19Stardom1031.8%7th
113Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura vs. T-Hawk & El Lindaman6/7DDT1021.2%2nd
114MJF vs. Jungle Boy5/23AEW1021.2%6th
114Butcher & The Blade & The Lucha Brothers vs. The Young Bucks & FTR7/8AEW1021.2%6th
116Matt Riddle vs. Timothy Thatcher5/27WWE (NXT)942.4%6th
117Undisputed Era vs. Broserweights2/16WWE (NXT)931.8%4th
118Chris Dickinson vs. Matt Makowski 9/20Beyond Wrestling921.2%4th
118Will Ospreay vs. Bea Priestley3/16WrestleTalk921.2%4th
120Cody vs. Darby Allin11/7AEW921.2%5th
120Mayu Iwatani vs. Syuri10/3Stardom921.2%5th
122Mitch McCarthy vs. Rip Rielly2/29AWL910.6%2nd
122Natsumi Maki vs. Sareee1/4TJPW910.6%2nd
124Yuji Okabayashi vs.  Daisuke Sekimoto11/23BJW831.8%7th
125Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii & YOSHI-HASHI vs. Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr. & DOUKI10/23NJPW821.2%5th
126LA Park vs. Eddie Kingston2/14RevPro821.2%6th
127Minoru Suzuki vs. Shingo Takagi11/7NJPW821.2%7th
128Jon Moxley vs. Brodie Lee5/23AEW810.6%3rd
128Ace Perry vs. Lee Moriarty3/15Bizarro Lucha810.6%3rd
128Tim Hayden vs. LFB8/15IPW Australia810.6%3rd
128Mei Hoshizuki vs. Maria1/19Marvelous810.6%3rd
128Dangerous Tekkers vs. Golden Aces7/12NJPW810.6%3rd
128Giulia vs. Himeka10/29Stardom810.6%3rd
128Mayu Iwatani vs. Utami Hayashishita11/15Stardom810.6%3rd
128Charlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley4/5WWE810.6%3rd
136Masato Tanaka vs. Tetsuya Endo6/7DDT731.8%7th
136Minoru Suzuki vs. Shingo Takagi8/29NJPW731.8%7th
138Jeff Cobb vs. Tomohiro Ishii10/10NJPW731.8%7th
139AZM vs. Starlight Kid10/3Stardom721.2%5th
139Men's War Games12/6WWE (NXT)721.2%5th
141Katsuhiko Nakajima vs. Kenoh9/18NOAH721.2%5th
141Timothy Thatcher vs. Oney Lorcan7/1WWE (NXT)721.2%5th
143Masashi Takeda vs. Toru Sugiura12/25FREEDOMS710.6%4th
143Mei Suruga vs. ASUKA5/23Gatoh Move710.6%4th
143Mei Suruga vs. Ryo Mizunami10/4Gatoh Move710.6%4th
143AZM & Kagetsu vs. Mayu Iwatani & Starlight Kid1/2Stardom710.6%4th
143Ivan Black vs. Ricky Rembrandt9/26United Pro Wrestling710.6%4th
143AJ Styles vs. The Undertaker4/4WWE710.6%4th
143The New Day vs. The Street Profits11/22WWE710.6%4th
143Mayumi Ozaki & Saori Anou vs. Aja Kong & Hiroyo Matsumoto2/24ZERO1710.6%4th
151Daniel Bryan vs. The Fiend1/26WWE631.8%7th
152Eddie Kingston vs. Jon Moxley -11/7AEW631.8%8th
153Suzu Suzuki vs. Tsukushi9/20Ice Ribbon621.2%7th
154Masaaki Mochizuki  vs. Kaito Kiyomiya  9/18NOAH621.2%8th
154Takumi Iroha, Rin Kadokura & Mei Hoshizuki vs. Momo Watanabe, AZM & Utami Hayashishita9/28Stardom621.2%8th
156CHANGO & Kaji Tomato vs. Kengo Mashimo & Kunio Toshima5/102AW610.6%5th
156Mei Suruga vs. Mitsuru Konno7/9Gatoh Move610.6%5th
156Emi Sakura & Riho vs. Mei Suruga & Yuna Mizumori9/26Gatoh Move610.6%5th
156Mei Suruga vs. Yuna Mizumori5/27Gatoh Move610.6%5th
156Trish Adora vs. Suge D10/9GCW610.6%5th
156Alex Colon vs. AKIRA10/17ICW610.6%5th
156Kota Ibushi vs. Shingo Takagi10/7NJPW610.6%5th
156Kenoh vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima8/4NOAH610.6%5th
156Lana Austin vs. Yuka Sakazaki1/11Pro Wrestling Eve610.6%5th
156Leon vs. Hanako Nakamori7/26PURE-J610.6%5th
156Jules Canan vs. Craven vs. Ritchie Taylor3/15Wide Bay Pro Wrestling610.6%5th
156Katsuhiko Nakajima vs. Shotaro Ashino2/12Wrestle-1610.6%5th
156Eddie Kingston vs. Daniel Makabe3/6wXw610.6%5th
169Takuya Nomura & Fuminori Abe vs. Kohei Sato & Daisuke Sekimoto8/10BJW531.8%9th
170Kaito Ishida vs. Keisuke Okuda11/15Dragongate521.2%7th
171Mitsuru Konno vs. Mei Suruga7/19Gatoh Move521.2%8th
172Kenny Omega & Hangman Page vs. The Young Bucks vs. Best Friends vs. Santana & Ortiz1/15AEW510.6%6th
172Jon Moxley vs. Darby Allin8/5AEW510.6%6th
172Lee Moriarty vs. Alex Shelley2/7AIW510.6%6th
172RED vs. Toryumon Generation12/6Dragongate510.6%6th
172AJ Gray vs. ACH10/10Glory Pro510.6%6th
172Jay White vs. Tetsuya Naito1/4NJPW510.6%6th
172Jay White vs. Kota Ibushi9/23NJPW510.6%6th
172Shingo Takagi vs. Hirooki Goto2/1NJPW510.6%6th
172Arisa Nakajima vs. Yoshiko1/24SEAdLINNNG510.6%6th
172Arisa Nakajima vs. ASUKA6/13SEAdLINNNG510.6%6th
172Arisa Hoshiki vs. Utami Hayashishita1/19Stardom510.6%6th
172Jake Nova vs. Tim Kade vs. Jackson Cross2/22Venom Pro Wrestling510.6%6th
172Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso10/25WWE510.6%6th
185TJP vs. Hijo del Vikingo2/4Impact Wrestling421.2%8th
185Shingo Takagi vs. Tomohiro Ishii2/20NJPW421.2%8th
187Ayato Yoshida & Tank Nagai vs. Kaji Tomato & CHANGO3/252AW410.6%7th
187Zac Reynolds & Renegade vs. Wacol's Most Wanted5/93 Count Wrestling Academy410.6%7th
187Daniel Makabe vs. Judas Icarus1/103-2-1 BATTLE!410.6%7th
187The Young Bucks vs. The Butcher and The Blade7/22AEW410.6%7th
187Kenny Omega vs. Jon Moxley12/2AEW410.6%7th
187Tony Deppen vs. John Silver3/1Beyond Wrestling410.6%7th
187Kimber Lee vs. Joey Janela8/23Beyond Wrestling410.6%7th
187KAI vs. BxB Hulk vs. YAMATO vs. Yoshino vs. EITA vs. Big R Shimizu9/21Dragongate410.6%7th
187Hagane Shinnou vs. Keisuke Ishii7/26Ganbare Pro410.6%7th
187Maya Yukihi vs. Suzu Suzuki8/9Ice Ribbon410.6%7th
187Low Ki vs. Masashi Takeda1/4ICW410.6%7th
187The Great Space War12/11Michinoku Pro Wrestling410.6%7th
187KENTA vs. Hirooki Goto1/5NJPW410.6%7th
187El Desperado vs. Taiji Ishimori12/2NJPW410.6%7th
187Edge vs. Randy Orton6/14WWE410.6%7th
187Johnny Gargano vs. Finn Balor2/16WWE (NXT)410.6%7th
187Timothy Thatcher vs. Oney Lorcan7/22WWE (NXT)410.6%7th
187Io Shirai vs. Candice LaRae10/28WWE (NXT)410.6%7th
187Strong BJ vs. Dangan Yankees3/1ZERO1410.6%7th
187Yuji Hino vs. Kohei Sato3/1ZERO1410.6%7th
207Hiromu Takahashi vs. Toru Yano6/24NJPW331.8%10th
207Thunder Rosa vs. Allysin Kay1/24NWA331.8%10th
209Arez vs. Tromba11/6Lucha Madre321.2%9th
210Daichi Hashimoto vs. Yuji Okabayashi1/2BJW310.6%8th
210Yasufumi Nakanoue vs. Yuya Aoki3/21BJW310.6%8th
210Masato Tanaka vs. MAO2/25DDT310.6%8th
210Naruki Doi vs. Susumu Yokosuka3/1Dragongate310.6%8th
210Davis Storm vs. Gavin McGavin12/5EPW310.6%8th
210ASUKA vs. Shota12/26Ganbare Pro310.6%8th
210Grizzly Kal Jak vs. Erik Hammer10/12GCW310.6%8th
210Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Suzu Suzuki3/15Ice Ribbon310.6%8th
210Tetsuya Naito vs. EVIL7/12NJPW310.6%8th
210Tetsuya Naito vs. Zack Sabre Jr.9/24NJPW310.6%8th
210Kazuchika Okada vs. Tomohiro Ishii10/13NJPW310.6%8th
210Jay White vs. Kota Ibushi11/7NJPW310.6%8th
210Shane Taylor vs. Jay Briscoe12/18Ring of Honor310.6%8th
210Briscoes vs. Bandido & Flamita2/9Ring of Honor310.6%8th
210Jeremy Wyatt vs. Nick Gage1/10St. Louis Anarchy310.6%8th
210Tam Nakano vs. Giulia7/26Stardom310.6%8th
210Mayu Iwatani vs. Tam Nakano9/19Stardom310.6%8th
210Malibu vs. Jack Tucker9/12United Pro Wrestling310.6%8th
210Asuka vs. Sasha Banks8/23WWE310.6%8th
210AJ Styles vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Sami Zayn9/27WWE310.6%8th
230Mei Suruga & Baliyan Akki vs. Emi Sakura & Kaori Yoneyama12/5Gatoh Move221.2%10th
230Hiromu Takahashi vs. Robbie Eagles11/29NJPW221.2%10th
230Yuji Hino vs. Yuji Okabayashi1/1ZERO1221.2%10th
233Yuji Okabayashi vs. Tank Nagai5/232AW210.6%9th
233Penta El Zero M vs. Rey Fenix10/21AEW210.6%9th
233Darby Allin vs. Sammy Guevara2/29AEW210.6%9th
233Chris Jericho vs. Jon Moxley2/29AEW210.6%9th
233Yuki Ishikawa vs. Raito Shimizu2/11BAP210.6%9th
233Daichi Hashimoto vs. Yuji Okabayashi10/21BJW210.6%9th
233Toru Sugiura vs. Yuko Miyamoto2/10FREEDOMS210.6%9th
233Lulu Pencil vs. Kaori Yoneyama6/20Gatoh Move210.6%9th
233Dark Sheik vs. Still Life w/ Apricots & Pears10/10GCW210.6%9th
233Tom Lawlor vs. Homicide10/11GCW210.6%9th
233John Wayne Murdoch vs. Orin Veidt8/30ICW210.6%9th
233Chase Cooper vs. Reaper8/15Impact Pro Wrestling Australia210.6%9th
233Deonna Purrazzo vs. Su Yung11/14Impact Wrestling210.6%9th
233Eric Young vs. Eddie Edwards10/3Impact Wrestling210.6%9th
233Sami Callihan vs. Tessa Blanchard1/12Impact Wrestling210.6%9th
233Shingo Takagi vs. SHO7/12NJPW210.6%9th
233Jay White vs. Shingo Takagi9/19NJPW210.6%9th
233Minoru Suzuki vs. Jay White10/13NJPW210.6%9th
233Go Shiozaki, Katsuhiko Nakajima & Shuhei Taniguchi vs. Takashi Sugiura, Kazuyuki Fujita & Hideki Suzuki1/30NOAH210.6%9th
233Kenou vs. Kaito Kiyomia11/22NOAH210.6%9th
233Ricky Starks vs. Nick Aldis1/7NWA210.6%9th
233Jinny vs. Nina Samuels1/11Pro Wrestling Eve210.6%9th
233Masashi Takeda vs. Brandon Kirk1/8SAW210.6%9th
233Yoshiko & Hiroyo Matsumoto vs. Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto8/26SEAdLINNNG210.6%9th
233Maki Itoh vs. Hikari Noa1/4TJPW210.6%9th
233Yuji Okabayashi vs. Kuma Arashi 3/15Wrestle-1210.6%9th
233Keith Lee vs. Roderick Strong1/2WWE (NXT)210.6%9th
233Women's War Games12/6WWE (NXT)210.6%9th
261Hikaru Shida vs. Thunder Rosa9/5AEW110.6%10th
261Chris Jericho & Jake Hager vs. Luther & Serpentico10/7AEW110.6%10th
261Naoya Nomura vs. Ayato Yoshida1/19AJPW110.6%10th
261Kento Miyahara & Yuma Aoyagi vs. Jake Lee & Koji Iwamoto12/7AJPW110.6%10th
261Fuminori Abe vs. Isami Kodaka7/14BASARA110.6%10th
261Nick Jackson vs. Matt Jackson4/20BTE110.6%10th
261Volador Jr. vs. Templario9/25CMLL110.6%10th
261Shinya Aoki vs. Sanshiro Takagi11/3DDT110.6%10th
261Kaoru Ito & Tomoko Watanabe vs. Miyuke Takase & Haruka Umesaki8/30DIANA110.6%10th
261Miyako Matsumoto vs. Cypress Ueno6/5Gake No Fuchi110.6%10th
261Anthony Greene vs. Ava Everett8/26Limitless Wrestling110.6%10th
261Chigusa Nagayo & Takumi Iroha vs. Mei Hoshizuki & Masha Slamovich3/20Marvelous110.6%10th
261Yota Tsuji vs. Gabriel Kidd6/15NJPW110.6%10th
261EVIL vs. Zack Sabre Jr.9/20NJPW110.6%10th
261Will Ospreay vs. Minoru Suzuki10/7NJPW110.6%10th
261Kenou vs. Kazushi Sakuraba12/6NOAH110.6%10th
261Thunder Rosa vs. Allysin Kay2/4NWA110.6%10th
261Hoodfoot vs. Erick Stevens10/11Paradigm Pro110.6%10th
261Spike Trivet vs. Jordon Breaks3/14Riptide110.6%10th
261DASH Chisako, Meiko Satomura & Syuri vs. Chihiro Hashimoto, Sakura Hirota & Yuu3/28Sendai Girls110.6%10th
261Giulia, Syuri, Maika & Himeka vs. Momo Watanabe, Utami Hayashishita, AZM & Saya Kamitani7/24Stardom110.6%10th
261Hikari Noa vs. Mirai Maiumi11/7TJPW110.6%10th
261Craven vs. Renegade2/22Venom Pro Wrestling110.6%10th
261Keith Lee vs. Dominik Dijacovik2/16WWE (NXT)110.6%10th
261Sasha Banks vs. Io Shirai7/1WWE (NXT)110.6%10th
261Io Shirai vs. Rhea Ripley11/18WWE (NXT)110.6%10th
261Timothy Thatcher vs. Tommaso Ciampa12/6WWE (NXT)110.6%10th

 

Voices of Wrestling 2020 Match of the Year
(Archives)

Visit voicesofwrestling.com/match-of-the-year to view our Match of the Year archives.